Forbidden Fruit
by Daniann8
Summary: Hermione finds herself back at Hogwarts as Head Girl for her "8th" year stuck with an unappealing Head Boy. But maybe he isn't as unappealing as she originally thought. DMxHG. M for later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

I came up with an idea! I hope you all like it!

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own anything in the Harry Potter universe!

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"All aboard! The Hogwarts express departs in five minutes!" the conductor yelled as Hermione bid her parents a final goodbye on platform 9 ¾.

"Good luck, Darling! Have fun and don't study too hard, dear," her mother, Jean, said with a chuckle. Hermione rolled her eyes at her mother. "Oh you know I'm only joking. Your father and I just want you to enjoy your last year at Hogwarts."

"I know, mum," Hermione started with a sad smile, "I just feel like it isn't going to be the same since…you know…"

"The battle?" her father finished, looking at her with concern. "We just want you to be able to look back at this last year fondly, after all, you got the position you've been dreaming of since you were little!" he said to her with an encouraging smile. Hermione fiddled with the Head Girl badge nervously. She took a deep breath and put on a happy face for her parents.

"You're right," she said with determination, "this will be a good year! No impending doom, just fun times with my friends and, of course, a lot of studying! I do have to pass my NEWTS after all," she finished with a giggle.

"That's our girl," Jean said. "Now go on, dear, the train is about to leave!" Hermione gave her parents one last tight hug and hurriedly made her way over to the train.

She quickly found Harry, Ron and Ginny in one of the first compartments. She was instantly bombarded with hugs and questions from her friends since none of them had seen each other since Hermione left for Australia to find her parents.

"Settle down!" she exclaimed with a broad grin, her nervousness dissipating at the sight of her friends. "I'll answer all your questions, just give me a minute to say hello properly and settle in." Hermione hugged each of her friends and sat down next to Ron with Harry and Ginny across from them.

"We've missed you so much, Hermione!" Ginny started, leaning forward in her seat. "Please, tell us what happened in Australia!"

Hermione took a deep breath before she recounted her adventure overseas. "Well, once Kingsly and I got there, it took us a few weeks to actually find them, which honestly seemed to be the hardest part of the trip," she said with a chuckle. "Once we found them in Sydney, it was fairly easy for Kingsly to restore their memories, thankfully."

"How did they react to it all?" Harry asked next.

"Pretty much how I expected them to. They were quite cross with me when they first found out what I had done, but my parents are understanding people. Once I had explained why I erased their memories, they didn't hold it against me."

"That's good, Hermione," Ron said with a crooked smile and placed his hand on her bare knee causing Hermione to blush.

"Yes," she answered, her voice slightly higher than usual. "It was the best case scenario, for sure. After we restored their memories, Kingsly went back home and I stayed in Australia with my parents for the rest of the summer up until last week. I missed them so much," she said wistfully. "It was really hard to leave them again today after just getting them back, you know," she finished. They all agreed with her, Ron still rubbing circles on her skin right above her knee.

"Well, enough about me!" Hermione said, trying to lighten the mood. "What's going on with you guys?"

After a while of talking and catching up with her friends, Hermione tried to excuse herself to change into her school robes and meet with the co-head student.

"Wait," Ron said before she left the compartment, "do you know who the Head Boy is?" he questioned.

She shook her head and replied, "No, I don't. Probably a Ravenclaw, like Michael Corner. He was really smart and was third in our class, so that's my guess."

"That seems like a pretty reasonable assumption," Harry said, nodding in agreement. Hermione returned a quick nod back to him and left the compartment.

Finally, Hermione made it to the other end of the train, changed and pinned her badge to her robe before stepping into the meeting compartment. As she opened the compartment door, her mouth dropped at the sight in front of her.

Draco Malfoy sat in the compartment, legs stretched out and arms crossed over his chest, his shirt pulling slightly which accentuated his lean muscles. Not that she noticed or cared, or so she told herself. His hair wasn't gelled back in its usual du, so it fell slightly into his eyes (were his eyes always that piercing gray?).

"Drool all you'd like, Granger, but you're not my type." He spoke, shocking her out of her thoughts. She snapped her mouth shut and huffed at him angrily, crossing her arms in front of her.

"Contrary to popular belief, _Malfoy_ , not every girl in the school wants you in their knickers," she spat at him.

He stood from his spot and stared down at her. Had he grown?

He chuckled softly to himself with his annoying Malfoy smirk. "Maybe not yet," he said confidently.

Hermione scoffed. "Yeah right, Malfoy. In your dreams. Had it maybe ever occurred to you that you may not be _my_ type?" she said with a smirk of her own.

"Now now, Granger, I am everyone's type. Even filthy Mudblood's like you!" he snapped. Hermione saw red and moved to slap him, but he caught her wrist before her palm made contact. "I won't let you hit me again, Granger, but I do like my girls a little feisty."

"Fuck you, Malfoy!" she spat angrily.

"Not today, princess," he said with a wicked glint in his eyes.

She pulled her wrist out of his grip and scowled at him, "You're vile!" she hissed at him.

"And you're filth."

She sighed frustrated and rubbed her temples. "What are you doing in here anyway, Malfoy, this room is meant for the Head students."

He smirked at her and pointed at the gold badge glinting on his chest. "No…" she whispered.

"Oh yes," he said with a dark chuckle.

Hermione was about to respond but the train whistle blew, signaling their arrival. Draco moved to leave the compartment, bumping her shoulder roughly as he passed her. "See you inside, _partner_."

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So this chapter is short but it's just like a little prologue! I plan on my chapters being longer than this! Let me know what you think!


	2. Chapter 2

Hello! Chapter two is here! It was a little longer than I had expected it to be, but I'd rather have it be too long than too short. I hope you all enjoy! =)

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own harry potter (obviously).

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Hermione sat in the great hall actively avoiding eye contact with the Slytherin table. She specifically avoided looking at a certain blonde-haired, grey-eyed boy at that table. At the end of the feast McGonagall moved to the podium and addressed the students. All eyes quickly turned to where McGonagall stood; where Dumbledore stood for so many years before her.

"Hello students, old and new," McGonagall started, "I'd like to start out by saying: Albus Dumbledore was a great man and Headmaster who will surely be missed. I hope to make him proud by being a great Headmistress myself. I would like everyone in this room to know that my doors are always open to any student who may need my help." She paused and looked over the room with a sad smile on her lips. "I know this last year was a rough one for Hogwarts and many of you lost friends and family in these very halls. It is a fact that saddens me greatly and I'm aware that that fact makes it difficult for many of you to be here. Because of this, I would like to announce that a memorial will be built in the courtyard where the final battle took place to commemorate all who were lost in the war." The hall burst into applause at the news. Hermione looked around the room and saw so many faces with tears in their eyes and realized at that moment that she was also crying.

McGonagall raised her hands and the hall quieted down once again except for the occasional sniffle. "With all that being said, I think it's very important to unify the four houses to help prevent any future animosity. I took that into consideration when I assigned our new Head Students. You're Head Girl is Hermione Granger," McGonagall stated. Hermione stood and waved to the students and they applauded. Once the students quieted, she sat down and McGonagall cleared her throat to announce the Head Boy. Hermione finally let her eyes trail over to the Slytherin table to see Malfoy with a smug look on his face. "And Head Boy is Draco Malfoy." The hall was quiet as Draco stood just as Hermione had. McGonagall started clapping, urging the rest of the room to follow suit; though the applause was not as loud as it was for Hermione.

"I believe these two are the best students to represent house unity. After all, they are from rivalry houses. I hope to see you two working together as a team this year and to set a good example for the rest of the students here," McGonagall finished looking at the two pointedly. "Prefects, please escort the first years to their common rooms. Heads, please see me in my office. Thank you all, and let's have a good and quiet year at Hogwarts."

Instantly, Ron and Harry turned to Hermione looking baffled. "'Mione, how could you not tell us it was Malfoy?" Harry said.

"I didn't feel like talking about it, to be honest," Hermione muttered, not making eye contact with the boys. "Do you think I was happy to find that out? I was trying to pretend it wasn't true, but I see I cannot pretend any longer," she said miserably.

The boys grunted in agreement. "Well don't take any of his shit," Ron said to her with an encouraging grin.

"Who do you think I am, Ronald?" she said with a humorous smirk. "Of course I won't! Now don't you have a job to do, Ron? First years are waiting!" Hermione quickly said goodbye to her friends and made her way to McGonagall's office.

After a minute of walking silently Hermione heard another set of footsteps behind her in the corridor. Soon the steps had caught up to her and Draco Malfoy was walking side by side with her.

"Can you believe all that shit she was spouting off about house unity?" he scoffed. "Like that's gonna happen."

"Maybe it could if certain people could remove their heads from the asses and get the fuck over it," she said irritably. Malfoy's eyes widened slightly as the cuss escaped her lips. "War changes people, Malfoy. I'm not the same prissy, prude _mudbood_ you used to know," she spat the word at him.

"Clearly not," he said as they reached the gargoyle at McGonagall's office. "Unity," he said with a slight grimace. The staircase revealed itself and the two started to ascend to the office.

Hermione knocked on the door and heard the headmistress welcome them in. The first thing she noticed was that the room looked almost identical to how Dumbledore had it except for two picture frames behind the desk. Both portraits stared at the two students, one with a scowl and the other with a twinkle in his eyes.

"Hello Ms. Granger, Mr. Malfoy." Dumbledore said, his eyes still twinkling even as a portrait.

"I still think you are daft for listening to him, Minerva. This may not end well," Snape's portrait said in his lazy drawl to the headmistress.

"Oh hush, Severus. I'm sure these two will not disappoint us," McGonagall said to Snape's portrait.

"Hello professor," Hermione paused, "I mean, professors," she amended with a nod to the portraits.

"Please, sit down," McGonagall said, gesturing towards the chairs in front of her desk. "I'm sure you two have a few questions about your positions. I'd like you both to know that it was a unanimous decision that you two deserved the positions based on your academic records. However there was a bit of discussion on whether or not—"

"I'm worthy of the position," Malfoy finished for her, his face completely blank of emotion.

"To be honest, yes, some professors weren't sure if you should get the position based on your past behavior and certain choices you had made," McGonagall finished.

"You mean the fact that I was a Death Eater?" Malfoy asked, a hint of anger slipping through his mask.

"Draco," Snape warned "You may have taken the Mark, but that does not depict where your true loyalties lie. You and I both know that," Snape finished with a softer look in his eyes.

"Needless to say, Mr. Malfoy, Dumbledore was able to persuade the professors who were on the fence about this that you would be a good fit here," McGonagall stated.

"I trust that you will prove me right," Dumbledore added with a wink.

"I don't know, Dumbledore. I think you may be mad to believe these two can work well together," Snape spoke with a pointed look at Malfoy. "Seems like you know something we don't know," he uttered to himself. Dumbledore smiled and winked at Hermione. She felt her cheeks heat up and looked away quickly from the wise eyes of the old headmaster.

"Can you two please stay out of this?" McGonagall said with a stern look at the two portraits.

"We can't help it, Minerva," Dumbledore started.

"You were the one who wanted to put us here," Snape finished.

McGonagall huffed and turned to the students in front of her. "The point I'm trying to make is that I believe you two could show the school—and maybe the rest of the wizarding world—that two people as different as can be can set those differences aside and find a way to work together and move past everything that has happened. Can you two promise me that you will try?"

Hermione chanced a glance at Malfoy. He was looking down at his left arm, fists clenched and mouth set in a straight line. Her heart clenched a little at the sight. Hermione sat up a little straighter and looked McGonagall in the eyes. "I will try my hardest if Malfoy promises to try his hardest as well," she said with determination.

Malfoy looked up at her incredulously. "Well, Mr. Malfoy?" the headmistress said after a few long seconds of silence.

"I…I will," he stuttered finally, looking unsure of himself. Hermione had never seen him look quite so vulnerable.

"I'm glad that's settled," McGonagall said with a broad smile. "Now for the matter of your living quarters. I'm sure you know that you will not be living in the Gryffindor or Slytherin dorms this year. As Heads you have a few perks and one of them is that you have your own rooms." Draco perked up at this bit of information. "They are located on the fourth floor. Ms. Granger, your door is the portrait of Bellona Gryffindor. Mr. Malfoy, yours is located at the portrait of Walden Slytherin."

"The children of the founders?" Hermione asked.

"I believe every student is like a child to their house founder so I felt it was appropriate," McGonagall explained. "So, unless you two have any questions, there is a list of your duties that need to be completed before classes start on Monday. There is also a second list of duties for you to follow during the whole school year. Good luck, you two. Make us proud," McGonagall finished in a clear dismissal.

Hermione and Malfoy stood from their chairs and left the headmistress's office together. Once they were down the stairs they made their way to the fourth floor in silence. Hermione couldn't help but glance at him as they were walking. She quickly regretted it since he noticed and smirked at her. "Still checking me out, Granger?" he said with a chuckle.

"Would you quit it? I'm not checking you out!" she said as she felt the blush creep up into her cheeks.

"Whatever you say, Granger," he said. He grimaced as he started his next sentence. "Hey, I wanted to apologize about what I said on the train." Hermione's mouth dropped in shock at the words coming out of his mouth. "It was uncalled for and I didn't really mean it. I just…you really do infuriate me sometimes and it just came out. It's been my go-to for so many years and I think it was almost just second nature for me. I know that doesn't make it any better but…I promise I'll work on it." He looked at her expectantly after his apology. "Well, say something. Don't leave me hanging here."

"I…wow. I accept your apology, but I never expected one from you," she replied incredulously.

"I promised that I would try my hardest to get along with you, I figured an apology was necessary for that. So my apology isn't just about the train ride, it's for…everything," he added. "I can't promise we won't fight because I believe we most definitely will," she chuckled at that and nodded in agreement, "but I think we can try to work towards acquaintances, maybe even friends," he finished once they reached their portrait holes.

"I think that would be a very good idea," Hermione replied turning to face him.

"Let's start over, shall we?" He asked. "Hello, I'm Draco Malfoy, head boy. You can call me Draco."

Draco. She rolled the name around in her mind. It sounded foreign and weird yet she wanted to say it out loud.

"Hello…Draco," she said and he smirked, "I'm Hermione Granger, muggle-born and head girl. You can call me Hermione."

"Mmm…It's nice to meet you, Hermione." Her name rolled off his tongue as smooth as silk. She forced herself not to shudder at the sound.

"So…" Hermione started awkwardly, "I guess we should probably get settled in to our rooms. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Goodnight, Hermione," Draco said with a smirk still in place. He turned away from her and moved to his portrait which was directly across from hers. He whispered with his portrait for a few seconds and then the door swung open. He turned to look at her and gave her a slight nod before disappearing into his room.

Hermione turned towards her room feeling confused yet slightly giddy. "Hello, Bellona," Hermione said to the beautiful, raven-haired woman in the portrait.

"Good evening, Hermione," Bellona responded with a bright smile, her blue eyes sparkling. "What do you wish your password to be?"

"Sugar quills," she stated; a slight tribute to the former headmaster by picking her favorite candy.

The portrait swung open, revealing Hermione's common room to her. It was warm and cozy, much like the Gryffindor common room. There was a large window in the corner with a window seat viewing the lake (Hermione couldn't wait to curl up and read a book there.), a fireplace with a fire already burning in it. An armchair and a couch sat around a low table in front of the fireplace and on the table sat the two lists McGonagall had mentioned. Her favorite part of the room was the giant bookcase on the back wall. It was filled with books that she recognized—some she had even read—and titles she had never seen before. She couldn't wait to immerse herself in them. Next to the bookcase were stairs leading up to what she assumed would be her bedroom and bathroom.

Before making her way upstairs, Hermione grabbed the lists from the coffee table and brought them upstairs with her. Her room was also very similar to the Gryffindor bedrooms with their maroon colored walls, four-post bed with a mahogany wood frame and deep red sheets with gold embroidery. However, her bed was a bit larger than the one's in her old dormitory. Hermione couldn't wait to climb into bed and test it out.

The bathroom was clean and pristine with marble counters, shower, and bathing pool with a dozen steel faucets. "Wow…" was all she said as she exited her bathroom.

Hermione fell back onto her bed and red the lists McGonagall left for her.

 _Ms. Granger,_

 _As you know, being a Head student comes with extra responsibilities. The tasks on this list are required to be done by the start of classes on Monday. You may complete this work together in your common rooms or in the Head student office down the hall from you (Room 508)._

 _1\. Organize and distribute student timetables to the prefects._

 _2\. Make a schedule for nightly rounds (Assign prefects with a prefect from a different house)_

 _3\. Hold a prefect meeting Sunday night to go over their duties with them._

 _If you have any questions, please see me._

 _Headmistress McGonagall_

Hermione put the first list to the side and picked up the second list to read.

 _Ms. Granger,_

 _Here is a list of your duties that you will be expected to adhere. Some require the help of Mr. Malfoy and others you may do on your own._

 _1\. Assign yourself a time for rounds._

 _2\. Make sure students are following the school rules (dock points if necessary)._

 _3\. Hold monthly meetings with the prefects._

 _4\. Make a tutoring schedule (Have that set by third week)._

 _5\. Plan a winter ball before students leave for break._

 _6\. Help plan memorial ceremony_

 _If you need any help, feel free to recruit some prefects for extra assistance. Please let me know if you need anything._

 _Headmistress McGonagall_

Hermione groaned inwardly at the thought of planning a ball. She will definitely require extra help for that.

Since her bed felt so comfortable, Hermione decided to turn in early. Hopefully tomorrow morning she could start working on some of her tasks with Draco after breakfast.

* * *

Hermione headed down to breakfast bright and early feeling refreshed and very hungry. Her first order of business: find some food. She entered the great hall and the smell of freshly cooked pancakes filled the air. She sat down at her usual spot at the table; which was still mostly empty since it was relatively early on a Saturday.

Hermione was nearly done with her breakfast when Draco sauntered into the Great Hall with Pansy on his arm. Her eyes met his and he whispered something into Pansy's ear. The Slytherin girl pouted slightly but kissed Draco and the cheek and made her way over to the Slytherin table. Instead of following Pansy, he made a b-line towards the Gryffindor table.

"Good morning, Hermione," Draco said with that ever present smirk on.

"Yes, I see it _has_ been a good morning for you," she said a little scathingly, much to her surprise.

Draco let out a surprised chuckle. "Is Hermione Granger jealous? Of Pansy Parkinson?" he said with glee.

"Oh, shut up, Malfoy!" she said with a glare. "I am not."

"So I'm Malfoy again?" Draco asked.

"Only when you annoy me, yes" she answered. He chuckled again and looked over at the Slytherin table. Hermione followed his gaze and her eyes landed on Parkinson. She was talking to another Slytherin girl, her raven hair falling over one shoulder and a smile on her rosy lips. Hermione hated to admit it, but she had definitely grown out of her puggish looks and into a beautiful girl who would most definitely be Draco's type. "So, you and Parkinson?" she asked, trying not to sound disappointed—because she definitely was not. Not at all.

Draco looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "Do you really want to talk about me and Pansy?" he inquired.

Hermione shook her head. "No, not really," she decided. "What did you need?"

"Have you read the lists McGonagall left?" he asked with a business-like tone.

"Of course," she answered. "Would you like to work on them today?"

He nodded and checked his watch. "Let's meet in our office in about half an hour? I can eat quickly and I see you are almost done," he finished, looking at her almost empty plate. Hermione nodded and stood from the table, slinging her bag over her shoulder.

"Sounds good, Draco," she said and his lips twitched into a slight smile at the sound of his first name. "I'm going to head there now; I'm itching to check out our new office."

"Alright, see you there," he said and headed over to his house table.

As Hermione was leaving the Great Hall, she ran into Ron and Harry at the stairs.

"'Mione!" Ron said with a smile. "Where are you going? Did you eat already?"

"Yeah, I just finished. I'm actually headed to my office to get some work done," she said.

"Working already?" Harry asked, pushing his glasses up his nose. "Isn't it a little early for that?"

Hermione chuckled and shook her head. "No, Harry, not school work. I have some head duties I have to complete before classes start. So If I don't see you guys today, that's what I'm doing. I don't really know how long it will take," she said with a shrug.

"Do you have to work with Malfoy?" Ron asked with a grimace.

"Of course I do, we _are_ partners," she said and the boys looked slightly shocked. "He is actually being rather civil with me and we came to a sort of…truce last night," she said, trying to will the blush creeping into her cheeks to stay away.

"If you say so, 'Mione," Harry said. "But if he does anything out of line, you promise you'll let us know, right?"

"You know I will," she said with a reassuring smile. "But, you two know I can handle myself."

The three laughed together, remembering the time Hermione punched Draco in the face. "I'm still scared of your right hook," Harry said after he calmed down.

"Well don't ever make me use it on you!" she joked holding up her fist, causing the boys to crack up again.

Hermione checked the clock on the wall and realized with a start that she had wasted almost 10 minutes. "I'm sorry, guys, I have to go!" She said quickly, giving them both a tight squeeze. "I'll see you guys later!"

"Wait," Ron called climbing up the stairs towards her. "I was hoping maybe later we could talk about…you know…us?" he said.

"Oh," she started, eyes wide, "yeah, maybe tomorrow after our prefect meeting."

"That sounds perfect, 'Mione," he said with a smile. "See you then," he added and followed Harry into the Great Hall.

She turned and continued her trek up to the fourth floor. She couldn't help but think of Ron while she walked. The aftermath of the war was hard on a lot of people—especially the Weasley's—and while some relationships grew, such and Ginny and Harry's, others stayed stagnant. Unfortunately for Hermione and Ron, they hadn't seemed to be growing. It wasn't that there was a lack of love between the two, it just seemed like it wasn't the right kind of love. At least, that's how Hermione felt.

Ron had apparently felt that they were fine and nothing was wrong with their relationship and while Hermione enjoyed certain aspects of their relationship, there were definitely parts she felt needed improvement.

Such as their communication, or rather lack of communication. Ron didn't think talking about how he felt was important. He hadn't wanted to express any of his thoughts or feelings in the aftermath of the war. He thought there were better…remedies to cure his depression. It wasn't that Hermione hadn't wanted him or that he wasn't an adequate lover, it just wasn't what _she_ needed. And towards the end, Hermione felt that all there was to their relationship was sex. So the only real solution to her was to end it. But apparently, Ron seemed to think it was just a temporary break.

She decided she'd hear him out tomorrow and she would make her decision based on what he says. As she decided this, she finally made it to her office. She pushed the door open to find a cozy office with a long mahogany table in it with enough seats for all the prefects. A fireplace was located on the far end of the room with a few armchairs and a love seat. A chalk board lined the wall by the table and on the table sat a large stack of timetables for Draco and Hermione to sort. "Great…" she said, grimacing at the pile. She sat down at one end of the table and halved the pile. She looked up as she heard the door swing open.

"That's a lot of timetables," Draco said throwing his bag onto the table and sat in the chair next to her. He rolled up the sleeves of his white button down and Hermione pretended not to notice how nice his forearms looked. That is, until she saw the Dark Mark marring his pale skin.

Draco looked at her and noticed her shocked expression. He quickly followed her gaze and realized what she was staring at. "I'm sorry, I forget it's there sometimes." He grimaced and moved to cover it back up.

Hermione place her arm on his hand that was trying to roll down his sleeve. "Can I see it?" she asked tentatively.

He looked at her incredulously. "Are you sure?" he asked skeptically. She nodded and held out her hand. He hesitantly placed his arm in her grip and she moved her head closer to inspect it. It was terrifyingly beautiful and intricate on his pale, smooth skin. She ran her thumb over it and noticed goose pimples rise up oh his skin. "I wish it were gone every single day. I hate how it marks who I am…was." He glared at the offending mark on his arm.

"Draco," she said, looking up into his eyes. She pulled up the sleeve on her right arm, revealing her 'mudblood' scar. "These marks do not define who we are. Yes, I may be a muggle born and yes, you were a Death Eater. But I am not a mudblood and you are not a murderer," she said passionately.

"I may not have actually killed anyone, Hermione, but I'm not completely innocent. I did some horrible things," he said, sounding ashamed.

"I never believe you wanted to do any of those _things_ ," she said, gripping his arm a little tighter.

"But I still did them."

Hermione sighed and held her scarred arm up for him to see. "Draco, does this describe who I am?"

"No, but that's different, Hermione," he said grabbing her arm and moving his thumb over the raised scar. "You couldn't choose who you were born to and this is the worst term to call a person like you. It isn't who you are because your blood looks no different than mine," he said, seemingly looking back to a distinct memory.

"Draco," she said, waiting until he turned his grey eyes back to her. "And this is not who you are. You didn't choose this life either. You couldn't escape this anymore than I could have escaped my upbringing. Not that I wanted to, but that's beside the point. You were stuck with this and I don't fault you for it because you couldn't get out of it. There's a reason you aren't rotting away in Azkaban, Draco, and that's because people could see that you didn't want this—didn't choose this," she finished, practically willing him to get it.

He sighed in defeat. "Fine, if you say so," he said. Suddenly, the two realized how close they were sitting; their faces a few inches apart. Hermione's face felt warm and she knew her cheeks reflected the warmth she felt.

"Well, thanks," he finally said, raking his fingers through his hair. Her eyes followed the movement. "For being so understanding and all that. I wouldn't blame you if you hated me, since you probably have the most reasons to hate me out of anyone else I know. So…thanks," he finished lamely.

"You're welcome," she said with a warm smile. "We should get started on sorting these timetables." She passed him his pile and began to explain how she thought they should organize them. "I think we should order them by house, gender, and year. So when we give the prefects the time tables they have to hand out, they will be even more organized."

He looked confused as he picked up his first timetable. She sighed and picked up a timetable from her stack. "For example," she started, "this is Alyssa Darling's timetable. She is a third year Ravenclaw." She moved to the chalkboard and began writing the names of the prefects down on the board—eight people from each house (since eighth year prefects were added). So, the fifth year prefects will hand out timetables to their house's first and second year students, sixth year prefects will hand out to third and fourth year students, seventh year prefects will hand out to fifth and sixth year students, and eighth year prefects will hand out to seventh and eighth year students. Does that make sense?" She asked, turning back to face Draco.

"Yeah, it does," he said looking less confused. "But why also by gender?"

"So girl prefects give to girls and boy prefects give to boys," she answered, moving back to her chair. "So, Alyssa's timetable would go to the sixth year, female prefect, Selena Fawcett." He nodded and began sorting the timetables.

After an hour or so of sorting, the two heads had 36 piles each with the name of a prefect on it. "So, do you want to start on the rounds groupings?" she asked, stretching her arms behind her.

Draco sighed and brushed his fringe out of his eyes. "I suppose that's a good idea," he said moving over to the list of prefects on the chalkboard.

Hermione grabbed a piece of chalk and wrote her name and Draco's at the top of the list. "I think you and I should do our rounds together since we are supposed to be setting an example for the other prefects," she said as she looped the 'y' in Malfoy.

Draco nodded in agreement. "Pansy is not going to be happy about that, but I do agree," he said with a slight chuckle.

"Well, Parkinson will have to get over it. You two are from the same house anyway, so it wouldn't matter," Hermione bit back at him.

"Woah, put the claws away," Draco said, raising his hands up with a smirk on his lips.

"My claws are not out!" she said with a stomp of her foot.

Draco let out a real laugh, causing Hermione to forget about what they were arguing about.

"You're funny, Hermione," he said, pulling his fingers through his hair. "What about Weasley?" he asked, gesturing towards the redhead's name on the board. "Won't he be upset? You know 'fraternizing with the enemy' and all that bull shit?"

"Ronald is not my boyfriend so he does not _get_ to be upset with me," Hermione replied, connecting names on the chalkboard. Draco raised his eyebrows in mock surprise.

"Really?" he said, drawing out the word. "One of the golden couples is no longer together. When and how did that happen?"

She turned to him with her hands on her hips. "Do you really want to talk about me and Ron?" she asked, throwing his words from earlier that day back at him.

He thought for a moment and then said: "Yes, yes I do."

"Ha!" Hermione barked. "Not happening," she replied, turning back to the board. She started to connect Ron and Pansy's names together before Draco interrupted her, pulling her hand away from the board.

"Woah," Draco said, shaking his head. "I'm going to veto that one."

"No, you haven't vetoed any of my other pairs. Why this one?" she asked, her hands finding her hips again.

"Because none of the other pairs involve my girlfriend killing me because she got paired with someone she can't stand," Draco said and folded his arms across his chest. Both glared at each other, not willing to budge on their stance.

"You can tell your girlfriend that it was my idea. Which—by the way—I think is a good idea. If you and I could work on being friends, why can't other people who don't get along?" Hermione said. She finished connecting the line to Pansy's name.

"Fine," Draco huffed. "But this is your idea, not mine!"

With that settled, Hermione and Draco finished the rest of the pairs without any complaints and the two heads walked down to the Great Hall for lunch where they parted with a quick goodbye. She joined her friends at the Gryffindor table but found that her mind wasn't focused on her friends. It seemed to be more interested in a blonde-haired Slytherin sitting across the hall.

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There it is! I hope you all liked it! I'm hoping to get a new chapter up at least once a week. So please let me know what you thought about it!


	3. Chapter 3

Oh my gosh, I'm sorry! I promised I would try to update once a week and I'm pretty sure it's been more that two weeks since I updated. Maybe I'll post two this week...

Anyway, I enjoyed writing this chapter so I hope you guys also enjoy it!

 **Disclaimer:** Don't forget! I own nothing.

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The next day flew by rather quickly much to Hermione's disappointment. She had been enjoying her last day of relaxation before classes started by lounging in her common room and reading one of her mum's old muggle romance novels. Now, she found herself making her way down the head's corridor to their office where she was to meet Draco before their prefect meeting.

She opened that door and found the room empty. She huffed at Draco's tardiness and charmed the chalk board to write the patrol pairs on it. She began to straighten her meeting notes when the door flung open and Draco sauntered in with a lazy smirk on his face.

"Pardon my tardiness, princess," he said. She frowned at his pet name for her that he seemed to like for some reason. "I got a bit…tied up," he finished with a chuckle.

Hermione grimaced and rolled her eyes. "Gross, Draco. I don't care to know about your…extracurricular activities."

His smirk widened at her discomfort. He clucked his tongue at her in mock disappointment. "Oh, Hermione, ever the innocent prude," he teased, slowly inching towards her.

"I am _not_ a prude!" she huffed as she backed away from him until her backside hit the table. "I enjoy…uhm…physical activities as much as the next girl does." Her face flushed as Draco stood directly in front of her. His eyes darkened as he placed his hands on either side of her on the table, effectively caging her in.

He leaned in toward her ear and let out a husky chuckle, causing shivers to run down her spine and goosebumps to prickle her skin. "Are you sure, Hermione?" he said slowly, his lips lightly grazing her ear lobe. "You can't even say the word you're talking about. Just say it, princess." He paused and definitely bit her ear lobe slightly. " _Sex_. Say it," he commanded. "Tell me that you enjoy _sex_."

Hermione held in a moan as she felt her lower abdomen tightening. "I…" she started, his breath on her neck making her momentarily forget what she was saying. "I like…sex," she breathed out, barely a whisper.

Her breath hitched as he locked eyes with her. Was that…desire? It was too late to tell before he quickly schooled his features and backed away from her. He cracked a grin as she composed herself. "See, Hermione, that wasn't so hard?"

Draco stared at her bemusedly as her mouth continued to open and close as she tried to form words that wouldn't come out. "You have a girlfriend," she finally got out.

He laughed again. "Indeed. Pansy is my girlfriend."

"And you don't feel bad for what you just did?"

"And what did I do, Hermione?" he asked? She remained quiet while he studied her, still leaning against the table and taking ragged breaths. "Did I kiss you?" She shook her head. "Did I have sex with you?" she flushed but still shook her head. "Well, then I believe I didn't do anything to feel guilty about. I just used my sneaky Slytherin charm to get you to admit something, that's all."

"Ugh!" she exclaimed with a stomp of her foot. "You fucking snake!"

"You're welcome, princess. Now you can use big girl words when talking about…extracurriculars," he finished with a wink. "We should get ready for our meeting," he stated, back to business.

Hermione took a few deep breaths and composed herself quickly before turning back to face the head boy. "Right, how do you think we should start the meeting?"

He studied the chalk board with a slight groan. "I suppose we could start with the patrol pairs, to get the bad news out of the way then end with good news of the ball and memorial ceremony. Does that sound good to you?"

Hermione nodded and waved her wand over her bag and a stack of papers flew out and placed themselves in front of every chair. "Sounds good to me," she said as the first group of prefects entered the office.

"Ahh, the Ravenclaws," Draco said with a teasing glint in his eyes. "Never tardy, are we?"

"Never," Padma said with a smirk of her own.

The chairs around the table quickly began to fill in as the other houses arrived; Slytherin being the last house to walk through the door.

Hermione stood at the head of the table with Draco and cleared her throat to quiet the room down. She locked eyes with Ron and he gave her an encouraging smile, which she returned back. "Now that everyone is settled let's begin the meeting, shall we?"

"As you all can see," Draco took over and pointed at the chalk board. "These are the pairs for weekly patrols. Your partner is non-refundable, so deal with it." At this news there were a few groans and also some noises of approval.

Hermione smiled and continued on. "At the end of the meeting, meet with your partner and discuss which day and section of the castle you would want to patrol. Since there are 17 pairs of us, Sunday through Wednesday will have two slots and Thursday through Saturday will have three slots since that is when the majority of students sneak out of bed. It's first come first serve on the sign-up sheet so make sure you decide quickly where you want to be." Hermione explained to the group of students.

"For example," Draco started, picking up his quill. "Hermione, when would you like to do our patrols?"

Hermione couldn't help but notice the shock around the room as Draco used her first name. She shrugged and decided to go along with it. "Wednesday night works for me, Draco. How do you feel about that?"

Draco fake pondered for a moment and nodded in agreement. "Yes, that works for me. Upper or lower part of the castle?"

"Oh…um…upper part," she answered quickly.

"Perfect, I was thinking the same thing!" he said in mock surprise as he quickly wrote their names down on the sing-up sheet. "See guys, easy as that!"

"What if we don't like our partner?" a fifth year Slytherin called out.

"As I said before, partners are non-refundable," Draco finished with a sigh. "As you see, none of you are with someone from the same house, at the request of the headmistress."

"So, can we talk to the headmistress about changing?" Pansy asked angrily.

"Of course, love," Draco said, making Pansy's rosy lips quirk into a smile. "Though I doubt it will change her mind. That being said, if you have to miss a patrol please find someone to take your place as soon as you know."

"Now, onto our next topic," Hermione said, picking up a paper identical the ones in front of all the prefects. "On this sheet is a list of your prefect duties. For those of you returning, it's not much different than from years before. However, there are a few extra added duties added this year that have not been there before."

"A ball?!" Ginny exclaimed with excitement.

"Yes, we will be planning a Yule ball of sorts and planning the Memorial ceremony. So, please, if anyone has any ideas feel free to let me or Draco know."

The meeting went on quite smoothly as Hermione and Draco answered question about the prefect's duties and went over exactly what was expected of them.

"I think that is all Hermione and I have for you, so please meet with your partner now and discuss your time slot. Also, we have another prefect meeting next Sunday to discuss tutoring, so think of a subject you feel comfortable enough with to offer help to younger students." Draco turned to Hermione as the large group of prefects stood to meet with their partners. "That went better than expected."

"Yeah, not too bad at all," she said as the students started to line up at the sign-up sheet.

"Draco, dear," Pansy said as she scurried over to the two head students. "Why on Earth did you pair me with that dimwitted ginger?"

"Don't look at me, Pans, it wasn't my idea," Draco said, looking pointedly at Hermione.

"Ugh, I should have known," Pansy said scathingly. "This has mudblood bitch written all over it."

Hermione huffed indignantly and placed her hands on her hips. "We will not tolerate such language here at Hogwarts, Parkinson. 10 points from Slytherin for inappropriate and hostile language."

"You bitch—" Pansy started but was cut off by Draco.

"Pans, come on. We talked about this already."

"But she's so insufferable, Drake, I can't stand it!"

"I'm right here," Hermione said infuriatingly.

"How could I forget the Gryffindor Princess?" Pansy replied venomously. Hermione's eyes widened at the term Pansy had used. Is that why Draco calls her princess?

"Come on, Pansy, you promised McGonagall that you would try to get along with other students if you wanted to come back. All of us did, so you have to try," Draco finished with stern finality. Pansy pouted slightly until Draco gave her a not-so-chaste kiss on the lips. "For me?" he whispered.

"Fine, Draco, but only because I love you." Hermione gagged slightly as Pansy brushed another kiss to his lips. "You ready to go?" she asked.

Draco nodded and turned to Hermione with a slight smirk. "Goodnight, Hermione. We're going to head out and do some physical activities," he said with a wink.

"You mean, 'have sex'," Hermione corrected him with a sassy smirk. He chuckled and nodded. "Well, have fun and goodnight," she said, fake gagging as she said it.

"Well don't you two look chummy," Ron blatantly stated after Draco and Pansy left.

Hermione turned to face Ron with a nervous smile. "He's not so bad once he decides to be civil to you," she stated picking at the hem of her sweater.

"If you say so, 'Mione," he said in disbelief.

Hermione let out a nervous giggle. "I mean, don't get me wrong, he's still the same annoying, self-righteous, arrogant prick he used to be, but without the hostile and prejudice views he used to have."

Ron shrugged and gave her an embarrassed smile. "Alright, but if he gives you any trouble, you let me and Harry know and we'll set him straight."

Hermione laughed and pulled Ron out of the office with her. "Let's talk in my room where no one can walk in on us," she said, still dreading this conversation but hoping to make it as comfortable for the both of them as possible.

"Sounds good to me," Ron said as they came up to the portrait of Bellona Gryffindor.

"Hello, Ms. Granger," Bellona said with a warm smile. "And who might this handsome fellow be?" Ron stood a little straighter at the praise.

"This is my friend, Ron," she answered the beautiful woman in the portrait. "Sugar Quills." Bellona nodded and the portrait swung open.

"Wow, she's a beauty," Ron said while watching the door swing shut.

"Yes she is," Hermione agreed as she sat on the couch.

"Oh, I didn't...I mean…not like you—your even more," Ron stuttered over his words.

"Oh, Ronald, stop your blubbering," she giggled, "I'm not upset, she is quite beautiful."

Ron nodded and looked Hermione in the eye before continuing: "I know, but I really do think you are beautiful, Hermione. And I miss you a lot."

"Do you miss _me_ or do you miss having sex with me, because there is a difference," Hermione asked seriously.

"Is it wrong for me to say both?" he asked as he moved closer to her on the couch; their knees now touching. "I do miss being intimate with you, obviously, but I also miss having you around and being there for me. I want to do stuff with you that only couples can do, like take you on dates to Hogsmeade, take you to the Yule ball, walk you to class and kiss you goodbye; all that kind of stuff. Also, it's super convenient that you have this room all to yourself so we don't have to sneak off to an empty classroom or something like that," he finished with a sly grin.

"Ronald."

"Oh come off it, Hermione, you know it is. I bet Malfoy is using his room to its full advantage," he answered.

"What Draco does in his room is none of my business," she said with a blush, as she knew pretty much exactly what he does in his room. "I just want to know what you are feeling, Ron," she said as she grasped his hand in hers.

"I know, 'Mione," he said, tucking a stray curl behind her ear. "Right now I feel like I want you back and that I want _you_ ," he finished and pulled her face to his and kissed her. "I want you so badly; you don't know how much I've missed you."

He tangled his fingers into her hair and pulled her close again, latching his lips onto hers in a heated kiss. The kiss was rough and frantic and Hermione couldn't keep up with it as Ron's tongue darted into her mouth to explore. He let out a deep moan as he pushed her down onto the couch; his hand roaming her thighs and making his way under her skirt. She couldn't help but think back to her earlier encounter with Draco and realized that Ron did not make her feel at all like she had felt in that moment with Draco. She was snapped out of her thoughts as she felt Ron's hands pull at her knickers.

"Ron, stop!" she said as she pushed him off her. "This is what I mean, Ronald. You had said you wanted to talk about us, but all you really wanted was to shag me!"

"No, that's not all I want! I told you that I wanted you back. Isn't that enough?" he asked, exasperated.

"No it is not enough, Ronald," she said harshly, "I don't think we should get back together, Ron. I think what we want and need is very different. You need to find someone that can give you what you want without hesitation."

"But I only want you, Hermione," he said trying to pull her to him again. "I love you."

"I love you too, but I don't think I'm in love with you. I'm sorry," she said with a grimace.

Ron blinked rapidly as he processed the information. His eyebrows scrunched together as he rolled her words around in his head. "You don't…love…me?" he looked up at her with confusion in his blue eyes.

"I'm sorry, Ron, I really am," she said, rubbing his arm comfortingly. "I just want you to be happy and I know it won't be with me."

"I would be happy with you," he answered with a twinge of anger in his voice. "If you don't think you'd be happy with me, just tell me, Hermione."

"I…I think that I wouldn't have the happiest life I could possibly have if I stayed with you," she said sadly. "I wish I could give you what you want, Ron, but I'm not going to give up my chance for real happiness. I still want to be there for you, but as a friend—like I am with Harry."

They stared at each other for what felt like the longest minute ever. "Are you mad at me?" Hermione asked finally.

"Yes…no…I don't know, Hermione. I want to be friends with you still but I need some time," he said dejectedly.

"Of course," Hermione said, "Just let me know when you're ready."

Ron nodded and moved toward the portrait, he bid her farewell and she watched as he walked down the hall with his hands in his pockets. Suddenly Draco's portrait swung open and a laughing Pansy and Draco fell into the hallway where he kissed her passionately and sent her on her way following Ron.

"Bye, Drakie," she called over her shoulder and blew him a kiss.

"Hey," he said to Hermione who was still watching Ron as he disappeared from sight. She turned to Draco and leaned against her door frame.

"Hello," she said without much feeling.

"Why so glum?" he asked her, noticing the sadness in her eyes.

She shook her head; "Don't really feel like talking about it."

He looked back down the hall and saw it was empty and looked back at the sad girl across the corridor. "Well, I know a good pick-me-up, come on in," he said with a 'come in' gesture.

Hermione bit her lip as she debated her options. "Aw hell with it," she said and stormed into Draco's room, not quite sure what to expect but, for once, not caring.

* * *

 _Next chapter is going to pick up around where this left off! Maybe not at this exact moment, but it will be in Draco's dorm._

 _Hope you all enjoyed! R &R =)_

 _-Dani_


	4. Chapter 4

I'm so bad. I lost inspiration and got busy with school stuff on top of that. I finally finished chapter 4! I'll try to post more often, but I'll be on break in a week so who knows if I'll put up a new chapter during the next few weeks!

Hope you all like this chapter!

 **Disclaimer:** I don't own Harry Potter or any of the characters

* * *

Hermione stared at the amber colored liquid in her glass as she swirled it around. She downed the rest of the contents and winced as it burned down her throat. There was definitely a reason it was named Firewhisky. She slammed the glass down on the coffee table and looked over at Draco who was next to her on the black leather couch.

"Wow, Hermione, I'm impressed. That was your third glass," he said as he refilled her cup.

She chuckled and picked up her now full glass and leaned back into the couch. "This is breaking school rules," she said as she raised the glass to her lips.

"Nah, we are fine. We're of age so we're allowed to drink legally now," he said also taking a swig from his tumbler.

Hermione looked at him approvingly; "Sneaky Slytherin, finding all the loop holes," she giggled into her glass. He nudged her slightly and laughed as her drink sloshed onto her face. "Arsehole," she said as she wiped the whisky off her nose with her sleeve.

They sat in silence for a few minutes as they stared at the fire in Draco's hearth; a question forming in Hermione's mind. "So, earlier you mentioned something about having to promise McGonagall that you guys would play nice. Is that true?"

Draco was silent for a moment until he downed the contents in his glass. "Yeah, it's true. Any Slytherin student who had family on Voldemort's side that wished to return to Hogwarts had to swear an oath to McGonagall that we would promise to attempt to look past our prejudice and try to get along with the other students. So needless to say, Pansy, Theo, Blaise and I had to take this oath; plus a couple other students."

"Hmm…" Hermione thought for a moment before responding. "I think we all should have to take that oath. I mean, there are people here that are prejudice about other houses and I'm not proud to say that I used to be one of them."

"That will never happen, the only people the wizarding world thinks did anything wrong are people like me. People like you will never be looked down upon, princess," Draco said dejectedly.

Hermione glanced at Draco as she asked her next question. "Why do you call me princess?"

He snickered and took a sip of his newly filled drink. "Why, because you are Gryffindor's Princess of course!" he said and raised his glass to her.

"What even is that?! Parkinson said that earlier today too! Was there some kind of competition I won that I didn't even know of?" she said flabbergasted.

Draco snorted, causing his drink to go up his nose. He rubbed his nose and glared good-humoredly at Hermione and said: "Don't make me laugh while I'm drinking, wench. And no, there wasn't some contest. Just somewhere along the way people started calling you it. I mean, besides Potter, you _are_ the star of Gryffindor."

"So is he the Gryffindor Prince then?" she asked.

"Oh no, he's just the Boy Wonder, Boy-Who-Lived, Scar Head, Boy-Who-Wouldn't-Die, all that nonsense. Nothing about Gryffindor." Draco chuckled to himself.

"Hmm…I never paid much attention to what people said or say about me because most of it isn't true anyways," she said after almost finishing off the rest of her drink.

"Well, some of it is pretty interesting and I was always pretty curious about what was and wasn't true,"

"Oh? Like what?"

Draco took a moment to think of some of the things he'd heard about her before finally speaking. "There was always the thought that you were a prudish bookworm, which now I know isn't all true," he said with a wink.

She stuck her tongue out at him, making him laugh before he continued. "Let's see…you and the two Gryffindorks were in some weird threesome relationship—which didn't make sense with the prude bookworm persona."

"Definitely not true," Hermione said shaking her head in disgust. "Harry is like a brother to me and besides, he is in love with Ginny."

"And dear old Weasley?" he asked innocently. She shot him a glare and he put his hands up in the air. "Okay no talk about Weasel right now."

"You know, they say some interesting things about you too," Hermione said, her smirk twitching into a smile. Draco raised his eyebrow, indicating her to go on. "A lot of girls call you a...uh...sex god." A flush rose onto her cheeks as she uttered the words.

Draco's smirk slowly grew wider as he watched the redness creep up her neck. "Curious to find out, Hermione," he whispered seductively. "Maybe one day you will."

"You have a girlfriend, Draco, so no I will not," she said indignantly.

"Things change, princess, you never know what may happen in the future," he said. "If one day I happen to be single, you might just get your chance."

"I'm starting to think that _you_ are the one who wants to sleep with _me_ ," she said with a raised brow.

"Oh, princess, If you only knew how many guys want to shag you," he said with a chuckle. "I think you'd be shocked. I wouldn't be the only one that surprises you."

"So you _do_ want to sleep with me!" she said getting up on her knees on the couch.

Draco shook his head incredulously. "Really? That's what you got out of what I just told you? I just told you that probably half of the male wizarding population probably wants to shag you and you only care that I'm one of them?"

"I just never thought that you—Draco Malfoy—would ever want to and admit that you wanted to sleep with me, that's all. It's kind of unfathomable."

"Have you looked in a mirror recently, Hermione? I mean, come on, of course I would want to, let alone any other guy. The only reason any guy should be jealous of Weasley is because he's had you," he said taking a swig of his firewhisky. Hermione hummed to herself in thought as she sat back down on the couch and sipped from her glass.

"I wonder if that's why…" she said softly to herself.

"Hmm?" Draco hummed in question.

Hermione was silent as she pondered her recent situation with Ron and the new information Draco had just bestowed upon her. Could Ron want to sleep with her constantly to prove something to everyone else? Or was he just taking advantage of the fact that he had what everyone—supposedly—wants? Hermione sipped on her Firewhisky deep in thought.

"Earth to Hermione?" Draco said, pulling her out of her revere. "Is there something you want to share?"

Hermione nodded, deciding to tell Draco about everything that happened with Ron, starting from directly after the war ended to earlier that night in her common room. Draco was a good listener. He didn't interrupt her and seemed very attentive while she talked, like he was actually listening and taking her story in. Once she finished, Draco nodded and the two of them downed the rest of their glasses so they could pour themselves a new batch.

"What a selfish arsehole," Draco said finally as he handed her glass back to her. "It definitely seems like he was using you for sex or maybe for some other kind of self-gratification. Maybe to show off that he could win the heart of Hermione Granger, famous heroin and Gryffindor's virtuous Princess and all that crap."

Hermione scrunched her eyebrows in thought and eventually shrugged. "I don't know, maybe? Or he could just want sex, you know? Don't guys always want it?"

"I mean, not always," he answered back, "but if they have a pretty girl that's willing, it's hard not to want it. Maybe Weasley just can't control his desire for you. I wouldn't be surprised if that were the case." He smirked as a blush renewed on her cheeks.

Suddenly Hermione burst into a fit of tipsy giggles. He gave her a questioning look as she calmed down and started sipping at her drink. "You called me pretty," she said with a lopsided smile.

Draco rolled his eyes, finally starting to feel the effects of the firewhisky. "I do not believe I called you pretty," he tried to recall.

"I mean that you implied it," she said with her own eye roll.

She finished the rest of her glass and grabbed for the whisky bottle. Draco watched amusedly as she attempted to pour the amber liquid into her glass and couldn't help the laugh that escaped his lips as she spilled a decent amount of liquid onto to the table. "Alright, Granger, I think you are cut off," he said, pulling the bottle out of her hand. "That's all you get for the rest of the night."

She pouted slightly and brought the glass up to her face to inspect the small amount of whisky that had actually made it into her target. "You called me Granger," she pointed out, trying—and failing—to hide the disappointment she felt.

"I wasn't aware I couldn't call you by your name," he slurred jokingly. "I'm sorry, princess," he finished with a chuckle. "Better?"

She huffed but begrudgingly nodded in agreement, though Hermione would never admit that she was growing to like the pet name he had given her. She studied him discreetly as she sipped at the small amount of whiskey she had in her glass. She knew he was good-looking—she wasn't that dense—but she had never really realized just how unfairly attractive he was with his perfectly tousled white-blonde hair and molten silver eyes. Nor had she ever noticed the single dimple he had on his left cheek when he smiled or the faint—almost nonexistent—freckles that littered his nose and under his eyes. Maybe she had never been close enough to notice these attributes of his, or she had been too blinded by her hatred to really see him. Either way, she was glad to be seeing them now and could fully understand why the majority of the female population of Hogwarts was enthralled by the Slytherin head boy.

"I can feel you checking me out, Hermione," he said as his infamous smirk twitched on his lips.

Hermione blushed and quickly looked away, embarrassed at being caught. "I wasn't checking you out, per se," she slurred, "I was just noticing things about you that I hadn't noticed before. Do you know you have freckles?"

"Yes, I am aware that I have freckles," he said with a chuckle. "They were more prominent when I was a child though. When I was seven, my parents got me my first broom and I accidently fell off of it and landed on the walkway of our garden. I scraped up my whole face; mother was furious. After they healed my face for me my freckles looked like this because of the magical scar tissue."

"I didn't know there was such a thing!" she said, fascinated by the new information.

"Well, you normally don't notice magical scar tissue on skin that has no blemishes. But all magic leaves a trace including healing magic. So the trace from the healing spell used covers my freckles so they are barely noticeable. Magic is quite fascinating," he said touching his cheek.

"Indeed," she replied. "It's even more fascinating when it wasn't something you grew up with."

He looked at her thoughtfully for a moment. "I can imagine so. You are so brilliant when it comes to all things magical that sometimes I forget that you didn't grow up with it."

Hermione smiled proudly and said "That makes me happy to hear actually. I try so hard because I want to prove to everyone who believes I don't belong here that muggleborns can be just as good or even better than any other witch or wizard. I know I belong here and I want everyone else to see it too," she finished passionately.

"I don't think anyone can deny that you belong in the wizarding world anymore. You and your crazy band of do-gooders took down one of the most powerful wizards the world has ever seen."

"So do you still believe in all that blood purity shit? You did call me a mudblood on the train the other day," she pointed out.

"Like I said, you've proven everyone wrong, including me. I know now that I was completely wrong," he explained. "About the train, I was an idiot. I let myself revert back to my old self instead of handling the situation more maturely. The second you left my compartment I instantly regretted how I had handled everything. I knew I had to find you and apologize because that isn't the person I want to be anymore. I was so angry and unhappy before and I didn't want to be that person anymore. I don't want to be angry and scared all the time. I want to be happy, like you."

Hermione thought quietly about what Draco had just disclosed to her. It made her heart hurt when she thought about how hard the last few years must have been on him; especially since there was a madman living in his house, threatening to kill him and his family all the time. She felt her eyes starting to water as she thought about how horrible it must have been for him.

"Why are you crying?" Draco asked, confused as the tears she had been holding back suddenly began to fall. "It didn't happen to you."

"I just feel awful for what you were forced to go through this last year. You deserve to be happy as much as any of the rest of us do," she said through her sobs.

"Hermione," he chuckled in disbelief. "We all had a shitty couple of years. It's done, I'll get over it, we'll all be okay."

"You promise?" she asked as she wiped her eyes.

"I promise, princess," he said reassuringly. "Now let's get your drunk arse to bed."

"I don't want to go to bed," she said as she stifled a yawn. "I'm not even that tired."

"Sure you aren't," he held back a laugh, "but we still have classes tomorrow, and the head boy and girl cannot be late on the first day."

"Shit!" she said and stood up quickly. She instantly regretted it and fell back onto the couch since her legs felt like jelly and her head was pounding.

"You normally don't feel how drunk you are until you stand up," he said nonchalantly as he stood up slowly. "Let me help you." He held his hand out to her.

She clasped his hand and let him help her into a standing position. She giggled as she fell into him, "Sorry, I'm so wobbly," she chuckled into his shirt. "And you smell good."

Draco rolled his eyes and smirked down at her. "I hope you remember this when you sober up, because you will be so embarrassed about the things you've said to me tonight," he said with a delighted chuckle.

"I will not be embarrassed," she said as Draco walked her through the portrait hole and into the hallway.

"If you say so, princess," he answered and stopped her in front of Bellona. "Tell her your password."

Hermione looked at the portrait then back at Draco. "But then you will know my password," she said.

"So?" he said with a shrug, still slightly holding her up. She gave him a serious look and he rolled his eyes. "I promise I won't sneak into your dorm when you aren't there." She still looked at him suspiciously. "If it makes you feel any better I will tell you mine."

She perked up and smiled sweetly up at him. "Yes, that would make me feel better."

"Fine, but you can't tell anyone."

"Same goes to you," she said seriously.

He nodded in agreement and paused briefly before he spoke. "It's _redemption_."

Hermione was silent after hearing his password. His molten eyes were daring her to say something as he held her against his side. "Well that makes my password seem silly," she said finally.

"Yes it does," Bellona chimed in and gave Draco a warm smile. "Do you plan on entering at some point tonight?"

Hermione looked affronted but nevertheless gave her password sheepishly. " _Sugar Quills_."

The portrait swung open and she looked up to find Draco smirking down at her. "Really? You chose a candy as your password?" He helped her through the portrait and studied her room.

"Yes, it's supposed to be a tribute to Dumbledore since his password was his favorite candy," she answered matter-of-factly.

Draco shrugged and attempted to help her stand without his help. Once he steadied her he took a step back. Hermione was slightly embarrassed at the loss she felt as he backed away, taking his masculine scent and warm body heat with him.

"Can you walk up the stair by yourself?" he asked.

I…I don't know," she said honestly. She turned towards the stairs shakily and began attempting to ascend the stairs. She clutched the railing as she placed one foot on the first step and pulled the next foot up, just barely making it onto the step.

"Oh for Merlin's sake," he said with a huff, "let me help you. This will take years if I let you do it by yourself."

Her heart fluttered as his hand clutched her waist. She tried to hide her blush as he pulled her tightly against his side, knowing he was only doing this to keep her steady; but she couldn't help the warmth she felt as he held her close. She tried to tell herself it was just the firewhisky that was making her feel this way.

Finally, they made it to her bedroom door without any mishaps. She leaned against her door as Draco released her waist from his grip. "Thanks," Hermione said and cleared her throat to start again, "I had fun tonight."

"Me too," he replied with a smirk as he dug his hands into his pockets. "I'll cross off 'See Gryffindor's Princess drunk off her arse' from of my bucket list".

"Well, I'd love to help you cross off anything on your bucket list," she said.

He chuckled with a mischievous glint in his eyes and asked: "Anything?"

Hermione froze as she realized the suggestion in her words. "That's not what I meant!" she stuttered as a flush crept up her neck.

Draco laughed and leaned in toward her. His face was so close to hers, she could feel his breath tickle her cheek. "Goodnight, Hermione," he whispered to her and quickly turned away. Before she could respond he was already down her stairs and heading out the portrait hole.

"Goodnight," she whispered as he left and headed into her room.

* * *

Oh gosh, I hope you guys liked it! I try to capture how their witty, playful banter would look like! I hope I did/do it justice!

Let me know what you guys thought! =)


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